


the sun and the sky go hand-in-hand

by comehomenezumi



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, Fluff without Plot, Gift Fic, M/M, Pining, Snowball Fight, cafe date, hand holding, lots of hand holding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-08
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-17 12:54:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28600275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/comehomenezumi/pseuds/comehomenezumi
Summary: Every day with Sora was sweet, and they could only get sweeter.
Relationships: Aoi Hinata/Harukawa Sora
Kudos: 12





	the sun and the sky go hand-in-hand

**Author's Note:**

> this fic is my ESGE gift for @BirdSparkly on twitter. i've never tried writing hinata or sora before, but i hope i did them justice and that their interactions are enjoyable~

**DEFEAT**

The bright red letters flashed on Hinata’s half of the split screen, goading him. “Agh, I lost again!” he whined. He hadn’t pulled the trigger quick enough. He heaved a dramatic sigh, arms dangling at his sides. “Sora-kun, you’re so good at this game~” Hinata bowed his head and offered the toy gun to Sora with both hands. “Please teach me your ways, Master~!” 

After a couple of seconds, Hinata looked up expectantly, eyes glittering in anticipation. Sora hummed and pushed the controller back into Hinata’s hands. Hinata’s lips formed a pout, thinking that his pleas had been rejected, but then Sora said, “HiHi~ If that will make Hina-chan happy, then of course Sora will teach him~” 

Sora took a quick look around the room. The arcade was fairly empty today. They wouldn’t have to worry much about hogging the console for themselves. Satisfied when he saw that there wasn’t a line forming behind them, Sora declared, “Please stand back!” 

Hinata stepped away, giving Sora full use of the space. Sora aimed the gun and selected the single player mode. One-by-one, zombies filled the screen. They were slow at first, giving Sora ample time to aim the reticule at their heads before firing his shot. “HuHu~ Are you watching, Hina-chan?” he asked, and the head of the nearest zombie exploded into a pixelated mess.

He was watching, but not at the screen or Sora’s form--Hinata had long since come to accept that Sora is just naturally talented at these types of games, and by now Sora had already taught Hinata everything that he could. Instead, Hinata took the moment to observe the excitement and the look of concentration on Sora’s face. His eyes flicked between the oncoming horde. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed, and his intense gaze looked out of place on his sweet face. Hinata thought it was endearing.

He was so fond of moments like these. As he watched Sora play, Hinata’s heart did that thing that he still didn’t quite know how to put into words. It was… thumping? Or was it more of a pitter-patter? A mix of both? It wasn’t possible that he’d spontaneously developed arrhythmia, was it? Was Sora going to be the death of him? No, he couldn’t let that happen. Even if he might one day be happy to die in Sora’s arms, first he had to live a long and happy life to get to that point, right?

“Hina-chan~?” Sora asked. Suddenly, Sora’s face was close. Waaaay too close. Hinata instinctively stiffened up, widened eyes blinking slowly. “Are you okay~? Did you want to try again? And this time Sora will help you?”

Heat trailed up from Hinata’s neck, causing his whole face to burn. He felt like he’d been called out by the teacher for not paying attention in class, left with no choice but to come up with a random answer on the spot. 

“I’m fine, I’m fine~” Sora observed him, owl-eyed and unblinking. Hinata laughed nervously. He wondered what those special eyes of Sora’s were seeing. How much did he know? It made Hinata feel antsy. He spun on his heel, turning away from his friend. “Actually, I’m feeling kinda hungry. Let’s go eat at that cafe with the yummy cakes!”

When he turned around again, Sora’s eyes were shining with excitement. The corners of Hinata’s lips turned up into a small smile. Sora’s sweet, childlike innocence was something that Hinata cherished. The world they lived in was cruel, so he wanted to protect Sora in any way he could. He extended his hand out for Sora to take. “Shall we?”

“HoHo~ Sora wants to eat cake with Hina-chan~!” Sora’s hand slipped into his like clockwork. The first time they held hands had been when they visited the aquarium together, and Hinata had been afraid of Sora getting lost in the crowd. He hadn’t expected it to become a normal occurrence for them, but now Sora’s fingers linked with his were a comforting presence. 

“Okay! Off we go~!” Hinata declared, gently pulling Sora along. Hinata pushed open the door, and a rush of cold winter air greeted them. Fresh snow from the night draped itself over the cityscape. It crunched under their shoes where the sidewalks hadn’t been cleared yet. 

The air was bitterly cold after having been inside the arcade for so long. It was still early enough in the season that he thought he could get away with not wearing his gloves, but he was already starting to regret that decision. He shoved his free hand in the pocket of his coat to protect it from the sting of the wind.

Hinata glanced down to his and Sora’s entwined hands. Sora’s hand was slightly smaller than his own. He had expected Sora’s hands to be baby soft at first, but he was surprised to find callouses along his fingers and lining the top of his palms. After watching Sora scale trees with ease, he understood why. Most importantly: they were warm, and Hinata really didn’t want to let go. 

“...Is this okay?” Hinata asked, just to make sure. 

“Hm?” Sora hummed. He followed Hinata’s eyes to their joined hands and smiled. “It’s okay~! Sora likes holding hands with Hina-chan~” He squeezed Hinata’s hand reassuringly. “Though, Sora has a lot of energy. Sora wants to run! Can we run, Hina-chan~?”

Seeing Sora’s bright and excited eyes, Hinata couldn’t say no. Sora’s energy was infectious. He was beginning to feel a bit mischievous himself, actually. “Okay, okay~” he said. 

He released Sora’s hand. Sora tilted his head to the side, appearing a little confused. He opened his mouth to say something, but Hinata had already begun to move. He dashed forward. “Race you!” he challenged. 

From behind him, he heard Sora yell, “Hina-chan, that’s cheating!”

Hinata refused to stop, though. He turned his body, throwing a look over his shoulder. Sora hadn’t hesitated in chasing after him, fiercely determined not to be outdone by Hinata’s dirty tricks. 

Sora never had trouble keeping up with him. Normally, Hinata was the one trying to keep up with him, and it showed. Sora was already closing the distance between them. Hinata wondered when he’d finally stop being amazed by Sora’s physical prowess. Today wasn’t that day. Adrenaline freely flowing through his body, he willed his legs to run faster.

Not to Hinata’s surprise, but much to his dismay, it didn’t take long at all for Sora to pass him. Without so much as a “HiHi~” or a look in Hinata’s direction, Sora zoomed past, and the cafe was fast approaching on the other side of the park.

Hinata hurriedly examined his surroundings. He only had one opportunity to turn this race around. Hinata veered off of the cleared path, hastily deciding to cut through the snow. The resistance slowed his movement, and he could already feel snow sneaking into his shoes, but he was _so close_ to victory and he was almost there and--

And the next thing he knew was that he was falling face-first into sheer white despair, barely able to stick his hands out fast enough to catch himself. Hinata pushed himself up off the ground and started brushing the snow off of his clothes. 

He heard the crunching of snow from behind him, and Sora gingerly cleared away the snow on his back that Hinata was having trouble reaching. “Are you okay, Hina-chan?” Sora asked.

Hinata smiled at him, feeling embarrassed. “I’m fine~” He sheepishly rubbed at his neck. “Can’t believe I still lost even with the head start, though.” 

“Cheaters never win, Hina-chan~” Sora stated, wagging a finger in Hinata’s face. 

“Yeah, yeah,” Hinata acquiesced. “Next you’re going to tell me you don’t use cheat codes when you play video games.”

“I don’t~” Sora affirmed, pleased with himself. “HuHu~ Games are more fun when won through hard work.”

Hinata had truly met his match. This must be his fated rival. He wasn't about to lose. “Okay, then. Sora-kun, have a rematch with me! No tricks this time,” Hinata promised. 

“HoHo~? But we can’t run to the cafe if we’re already here?”

“No, no. No more running~” Hinata dismissed the idea, waving his hand. “There’s plenty of snow around, so let’s have a snowball fight! First one to get hit loses. Sounds good?”

“Okay~” Sora singsonged. Hinata began by walking a few paces away until there was ample space between them. He scouted out a spot near some trees so he could take cover.

“Ready…” Hinata crouched and started packing snow together into a haphazardly shaped sphere. Sora started doing the same across from him. “GO!” he announced.

Hinata raised his arm to take aim, but he wasn’t sure that his throw could reach Sora from this distance. Instead, he waited near to his cover for Sora to get closer. In the blink of an eye, Sora’s attack was coming straight for him. “Uwah?!” Hinata exclaimed, diving to his right.

With Hinata’s back turned away from him, Sora took the opportunity to inch closer to him unscathed. Every time Hinata paused to think, Sora launched another attack. Thinking wasn’t doing Hinata any good. So, he threw caution to the wind. 

He peeked from behind the tree and chucked his snowball at Sora. Sora hopped to the side, avoiding it with ease while simultaneously throwing his own. Hinata ducked, and it exploded against the tree bark.

Hinata hastily scooped up more snow, barely taking any time to form his ammo. He cradled them close to his body, and he ran out from his cover, unleashing a bombardment of snow blobs. Sora deftly dodged them all. 

Suddenly, Sora started to run directly at him, carefully shaped snowball in hand, and Hinata had no choice but to run back behind his tree. He grabbed a fistful of snow and frantically threw it behind him, hoping to catch Sora off-guard. When he checked to see if he made contact, Sora was gone. 

Hinata’s heart pounded against his ribcage. Hinata could only assume that Sora was hiding behind a different tree, waiting to lure him out, but Hinata wouldn’t fall for that. He took his time assembling a mountain of snowballs. Then, he started forming walls around himself to protect him on all sides.

Sora still hadn’t made his appearance. Hinata was fine with playing the waiting game. If he could handle the blazing hot stage lights, then he could handle having cold hands for a while longer. He’d wait patiently for his perfect moment.

Except by the time Hinata noticed the shuffling above him, it was already too late.

“HiHi~ Delivery~!” Sora’s voice rang from the treetop. An armful of snowballs rained onto his head, bursting on impact. Snow slid down the crevice between his coat and his neck, and Hinata screeched as it made contact with his bare skin. He jumped to his feet, frantically trying to shake it out.

Sora climbed down, a worried look on his face. “Hina-chan, are you alright? You screamed! Sora didn’t hurt you, did he..?”

Hinata shivered, hugging his arms close to his body. He shook his head, sending ice crystals flying. “I’m a-alright,” he stuttered. “J-Just cold, is all.”

“Are you sure?” Sora asked, growing increasingly worried.

“It’s fine, it’s fine~” Hinata reassured. Sora seemed to be taking the situation hard. His lip wobbled, and his eyes were full of concern. He repeatedly checked over Hinata like something wrong might magically appear if he kept looking. But no matter how long he looked, he wouldn’t find anything. Sora must have realized this too. Eventually he stopped just long enough to throw his arms around Hinata and bury his head into the crook of his neck.

The hug took Hinata by surprise, and he had to take a step back to brace himself. He wrapped his arms firmly around Sora’s middle, his chin resting on Sora’s shoulder. “Sora-kun, you didn’t do anything wrong,” Hinata murmured against Sora’s hair. “The only thing hurt is my pride. You got me real good--you should be proud.” He thought a joke might lighten up the mood, but he wasn’t sure that it worked. Sora continued to cling to him like Hinata would disappear at any moment.

It took a few minutes of soothing words and a reminder of the tasty treats awaiting them to coax Sora out from his hiding spot. “Come on~” Hinata urged, holding out his hand. “I need to nurse my damaged pride with an unhealthy amount of sweets.”

Sora nodded, finally ready to look Hinata in the eyes again, and tentatively took his hand. They crossed the street together. Chimes dangled when they opened the door to the cafe, announcing their presence. A few heads turned their way, but for the most part they were ignored. It was more crowded than it had been the last time he brought Sora here, and Hinata immediately grew wary. 

“Sora-kun, will this place be okay? It’s not too crowded, is it?” Hinata eyes scanned over the seating area. His eyes locked onto an empty table next to one of the windows. “If it’s too much, we could always go back to the dorms and eat there~”

“HeHe~ There are a lot of colors today, but Sora thinks he will be fine as long as he’s with Hina-chan!”

“Hm~ If you’re sure~” Hinata tried to ignore the warmth spreading throughout his entire body and focused on snagging the table before anyone else had the chance to steal it. He stripped off his coat and draped it over the back of the chair, successfully staking their territory. Sora did the same with his own coat before the two of them walked over to the display case together.

Hinata salivated looking at the assortment of different cakes and sweets. He could barely contain his hunger and excitement, but he let Sora order first so he wouldn’t have to be in the crowd for as long. 

Hinata barely resisted the urge to order one of everything. He limited himself to three different types of cake to start, and he placed an order for two hot chocolates as well.

By the time Hinata returned to the table, Sora had already devoured his first piece. Hinata plopped into his chair, ready to dig in.

After they satisfied their initial cravings, Hinata and Sora sat leisurely, savoring both the delicacies and their time together.

Hinata wrapped his hands around his mug, appreciating the much needed heat after his and Sora’s snowy battle. He watched fondly as Sora took a bite of strawberry shortcake, his face scrunched up in delight. Sora brought a little bit of sunshine with him wherever he went, and like the characters of his name, Hinata was drawn to him, basking in his light.

“HuHu~ Hina-chan, say ‘Ah’~!” Sora said, holding out his fork.

Hinata opened his mouth, and Sora fed him a piece. “ _So good_.” Hinata thought he might cry. “Thank you, Sora-kun. I’ll have to get a piece for myself before we go~” 

They sat in a comfortable silence for a minute, but Hinata realized that there was still one other thing he needed to give thanks for. “Sora-kun,” Hinata said, “thank you for spending time with me.” And he meant it from the bottom of his heart. Sora had become a truly irreplaceable person in Hinata’s life. 

“Hm~? Sora has told you before, hasn’t he? Sora is happy just being with Hina-chan~!” Sora grinned, face warm and bright. “And the sweets are icing on the cake~ HaHiHuHeHo~!” Sora was so proud of his joke that Hinata couldn’t help but giggle along with him.

Every day with Sora was sweet, and they could only get sweeter.

**Author's Note:**

> i've never used so many ~ in my life
> 
> title inspo: sora means sky and hinata is often associated with the sun


End file.
